Monday, April 30, 2012

Steve and I serve on a planning committee, along with seven other friends, for an event called "Kwero!" Kwero is an auction and dinner to raise funds for Calo Me Lare, the orphanage in Lira, Uganda that Project Hope Worldwide built. Thanks to the generosity of those who attended, we made....

drumroll please...

$162,000!!! $12,000 over this year's goal! 100% of the funds raised will go directly towards building new homes and a second school building at Calo Me Lare!

If you would like to view the short video that was shown at Kwero, click here and enter the password: Hope. And if you were not able to attend Kwero and would still like to make a donation, you can do so online here.

Here's some pics from our fun night...

My sweet friend, Shelli, fixed my hair for me - my first up do! ;-)

Kwero was held in the renovated Mayo Hotel Crystal Ballroom - such a beautiful place!

Each table was represented by an orphan living at Calo Me Lare. This is the little girl we actually sponsor. I can't wait to meet Anna when I go to Uganda this summer!

Silent Auction - ready to go!

Table assignments

Steve's mother made this amazing OSU quilt that was paired with an autographed OSU football and basketball. The three sold together for a whopping $2,000! The OU quilt was made by our sweet friend, Dina. It was beautiful, too, even if it was crimson and cream ;-)

This is one of the paintings that was sold during the silent auction. I thought it was so beautiful and my sweet hubby won it for me! I can't wait to hang it in our African-inspired dining room!

This is another painting that was up for bid at the silent auction. It was really neat for me to see because I actually took the photograph this pictured was created from on my first trip to Uganda. It's called "Saving Tracy" and you can read her story here.

Live auction! So fun and exciting!

My friend, Allison, and I

My friend, Nicole, and I

We had a great time celebrating transformed lives and we look forward to doing it all over again next year at Kwero 2013!

The girls and I recently had a Girl's Day Out with my friend, Jennifer, and her daughter, Makenzie. We had a Groupon burnin' a hole in our pockets to The Belvidere Mansion in Claremore so we went there for lunch. They have a great kid's menu and delicious salads and sandwiches. And of course, we always like to explore upstairs after we eat.

Then afterwards, we had fun antiquing and window shopping downtown. Abby was on a mission to find an old typewriter and Mackenzie was looking for doll-sized furniture. Had to try on a few vintage hats along the way, as well ;-)

Sunday, April 1, 2012

Believe it or not, we do get a lot of school work accomplished during our "normal" school day. It just so happens we've taken about three field trips within the last week - but hey, that's one of the many joys of homeschooling, I suppose! ;-) So here's our run down with pics from our fun activities...

Thanks for Stopping By!

This is a blog I kept up of our family from about 2008-2013. I always say "I don't scrapbook. I blog." It's fun to look back the fun memories we made. It's true when they say, "Don't blink because your kids grow up that fast!"

(I now keep a blog of our family on a page called, "Keep Calm and Love Big" although I don't write as much as I'd like to - just not enough time in the day! We also have an adoption blog where we post updates called "Arms Wide Open".)